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Fred Plotkin will weave stories of the personal tastes of leading composers with an exploration of food-focused opera productions.  He will be joined by two singers from the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, who will perform excerpts from some of those operas he discusses.

Plotkin is one of America’s foremost experts on opera and has distinguished himself in many fields as a writer, speaker, consultant and as a compelling teacher. He is an expert on everything Italian, the person other so-called Italy experts turn to for definitive information.  Plotkin discovered the concept of ‘The Renaissance Man’ as a small child and has devoted himself to pursuing that ideal as the central role of his life.

His book, Opera 101: A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Opera is the best-selling standard text in America on the art form.  He has also written six books on Italian cuisine, including the renowned Italy for the Gourmet Traveller.

This session forms part of a series presented by Oxford Gastronomica, Oxford Brookes University’s centre for food and cultural studies.